Apple Releases Figures on Government Data Requests

Apple late Sunday released figures about data requests it receives from the U.S. government, saying it received between 4,000 and 5,000 requests from U.S. law enforcement from December through May. The company said between 9,000 and 10,000 accounts or devices were cited in the requests it received during that period.

In a statement on its website posted late Sunday evening, Apple said the most common forms of requests involved investigating robberies and other crimes. Apple said it asked the U.S. government for permission to disclose the data and that it is “providing it here in the interest of transparency.”

The disclosure makes Apple the latest company to try to stem the fallout from the disclosure of a U.S. government data-collection program called Prism, which has raised questions about how the country’s largest technology companies share customer data with government agencies Facebook and Microsoftearlier disclosed figures.

Google, however, questioned the value of such disclosures without being permitted by the government to offer more details on classified requests. Facebook and Microsoft have indicated they weren’t satisfied with the level of detail the U.S. government allowed them to provide publicly.